I do buy it. Maybe I'm just an optimist. If we make it a priority, and put some money and political will behind it, we can make it happen. More than any other country, Americans have the ability to make it happen when we decide that it needs to happen.

In 1962, JFK said this:

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

In 1969, Neil Armstrong was walking on the moon. That was in less than 7 years, and they had to invent everything from scratch.

Unlike NASA in the 1960s, we've already invented wind farms, turbines, and CNG burning vehicles. If it takes 20 years to build a bunch of fuel stations for CNG, then that's because there's no profit in it. Think how quickly Compuserve, AOL and Prodigy built nationwide networks of dial-up centers back in the mid-90s. If there is money to be made, American ingenuity will kick into high gear. Nobody is as creative as we are at solving problems to make money. Nobody.

If T Boone Pickens is involved in it, there is money to be made. He's no fool. I don't buy him as an altruist -- he's a capitalist.

In summary, God bless America, and may we tell all the idiots in the world to keep their damn oil.

Man, I should run for office. Or be a preacher. Hallelujah, and pass the pale ale.

You and I could not be in closer alignment on this one. Amen. Except I will take a dark ale por favor.

Will it be done in 20 years? Dunno, but I think it is entirely doable and will be the next boom cycle. If we don't set a deadline it certainly WON'T be.

Been a long time since I've seen a JFK. (who was adamant that trickle down economics would work BTW... Reagan didn't invent it... and it did. Democrat idea. )

My uncle from Texas, a lifelong Republican, was in town last month. He said he thought Obama was actually more inspiring than JFK. He said he was still voting for McCain, of course. I was born in 1965, so I didn't experience JFK myself. I'm looking forward to the debates -- that's when he's going to win or lose, I think.

JFK inspired, but he was solid on economics, unafraid to take a position of strength in foreign policy, and pretty fair on building a competent staff (he still got a monumental education real suddenly with the Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis).

Still lookin' for a JFK. Don't see one. Between energy and foreign policy we truly need one.

Yep, I forgot about waste methane. I read that there is a landfill somewhere around Denver where they are literally drilling for NG. They wrote that there is 20 years worth (I don't recall the CF/yr, but it was significant enough to be viable economically).

I also read somewhere that they have genetically engineered some kind of algae to produce biodiesel.

Temporary solution for a permanent problem. Why is it that we've created an 'alternative' fuel that still uses oil? I'll bite when we have a truly alternative fuel, like hydrogen.

The reason we've created "alternative" fuels that use oil is chemistry - the energy density of oil is higher than anything else that is economical. That's why GTL is more promising than hydrogen or CNG.

Maybe one of these days we'll have a "Mr. Fusion" in all our vehicles as featured in the movie Back to the Future :-)

Yep, I forgot about waste methane. I read that there is a landfill somewhere around Denver where they are literally drilling for NG. They wrote that there is 20 years worth (I don't recall the CF/yr, but it was significant enough to be viable economically).

I also read somewhere that they have genetically engineered some kind of algae to produce biodiesel.

We're on the cusp of a whole lot of really cool things. I would wager on energy diversity. Redundant energy sources. Sustainable. Clean too. But who would pay for the skyscrapers in Dubai?

I also read somewhere that they have genetically engineered some kind of algae to produce biodiesel.

More or less, one of my projects was working on this. Certain types of algaes will grow some lipids for an energy source if they lose daylight for some reason. Those lipids (fats/oils) can be extracted for biodiesel. Algae's growing cycle is like 15-20 days too, so it's a pretty abundant harvest.

When I was on the diesel LCML, there was lots of threads about all kinds of alternatives, such as WVO. Apparently, when you fuel up at McDonald's your exhaust smells like french fries. Gives everyone behind you the munchies :-)